Dangote Group says it is making plans to invest in the steel sector of the economy “in a big way.”

Olakunle Alake, group managing director, Dangote Group, disclosed this on Thursday during a panel discussion at the Infrastructure Solutions Summit organised by the African Finance Corporation (AFC) in Abuja.

Alake said the conglomerate is making plans to expand operations into the steel sector of the economy.

He also said in a couple of years, the company will no longer go to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for foreign exchange.

“We do have something right now that we are trying to complete. I think this is the major project and that is our major focus right now. In another couple of years, we will not go to the Central Bank for foreign exchange for any of our activities, because at the end of the day, it’s a double situation, you import products which means you are creating jobs outside Nigeria and you struggle to get the forex,” Alake said.

“You drill for oil, you export oil, you don’t refine it. That way you are just killing employment.

“Our focus is two things. One, we make sure we look at things that can be produced locally, we create employment that way and we create value that way.

“Apart from the oil and gas project that we are doing, we are also one of the key stakeholders that has supported the government in terms of infrastructure tax credit scheme and we are using local banks to build that capacity across Nigeria.

“For us, steel is one of the key areas. You recall that years back the government decided that steel was major and set up Ajaokuta Steel and Delta Steel. We will want to resuscitate this sector in a big way.”

 

 

Scores of travellers have been kidnapped as gunmen hijacked three vehicles along the Emuoha area of the East-West road in Rivers State, according to Punch.

This came few days after three kidnapped passengers along the kalabari-Emuoha road regained their freedom.

In the latest incident, it was learnt that the gunmen diverted the passengers to a nearby forest in the area at about 8 pm on Wednesday, following an ambush in Evekwu -Rumuodogo communities in Emuoha.

A member of local vigilante group in the area who confirmed the incident said the vehicles which were travelling to Port Harcourt from various parts of the country included a commercial bus filled with passengers, a Siena carrying goods and another private vehicle.

The actual number of occupants in the vehicles could not be ascertained as of the time of filing this report, but the source said all the travellers were moved into the nearby forest.

The vigilante said he and some of his colleagues managed to trace the footsteps of the captives after the incident occurred, but could not go further for fear of the unknown.

It was gathered that some policemen from the Rumuji division visited the scene on Thursday morning.

When contacted, the acting spokesperson of the state police command, Grace Iringe-koko, said she was yet to get the report.

 

 

 

 

 

 

PRESS RELEASE

Within the context of the South-South Triangular Cooperation in the global south, the Tertiary Education Trust Fund TETFund) of Nigeria supports the strengthening of human capital within the Nigeria Academia. Just closing from a very successful outing in Brazil, the major outcome of the First Agricultural Research and Innovation Fellowship for Africa- (ARIFA) Symposium, which took place between 28th and 29th April 2022 at the Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Brazil, is the signing of a Memorandum of understanding between the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) and the Brazilian Association for International Education (FAUBAI) with the endorsement of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) of Nigeria.

The epic signing of the MoU took place on the margins of the symposium tagged “Pedagogic Retooling Strategy for Africa’s Agricultural Research and Innovation System: Lessons from Brazil.

The MoU was signed by the President of FAUBAI, Márcio Venício Barbosa and Yemi Akinbamijo, Executive Director of FARA with endorsement by Sonny S.T. Echono, the Executive Secretary (ES) TETFund. Present to oversee the solemnisation of the agreement was Mohammad Markarfi, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to Brazil. The MoU further opens up forty federal universities ready to accept ARIFA Fellows from Nigerian tertiary institutions for postgraduate, post-doctoral and benchwork studies.

The event’s objective was the strengthening of Africa’s human capital for Agricultural Research and Innovation – starting with Nigeria. It was further revealed that the FARA-TETFund partnership is raising the bar to identify five hundred faculty members from Nigeria’s tertiary institutions for skills upgrade in the new TetFund-FARA-FAUBAI ARIFA Partnership. Earlier, the ARIFA Symposium brought together, for the first time, over 50 ARIFA fellows currently undergoing postgraduate training in different disciplines in six Brazilian universities. Also in attendance were six Faculty Focal Leads (FFLs) from TETFund Centers of Excellence (CEO), representatives of participating Brazilian universities, and Vice-Chancellors from Nigerian Universities.

While declaring the event open in his intervention, the Chief Guest of Honor - Mohammad Markarfi, Nigerian ambassador to Brazil, reiterated Nigerian Government’s commitment to supporting initiatives that have improved their core of food and nutrition, which ARIFA encapsulates. Highlighting the agro-eco cultural intersections that present Brazil as a natural partner to Nigeria, the Ambassador encouraged the fellows to remain dedicated to pursuing their studies as they understudy the Brazilian cultural ethics within the context of the Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI).

In his welcoming remarks, Demetrius David da Silva, Rector of the Federal University of Vicosa, represented by Raul Narciso C. Guedes - Dean of Post Graduate school, welcomed the ARIFA fellows and participants, expressing the commitment of UFV to continue to play a leadership role in the implementation of ARIFA in Brazil and the Global South as a whole.

While addressing the Symposium, Sonny S.T. Echono, the Executive Secretary TETFund, lauded the concept of ARIFA, and Nigeria was selected to lead the pack under the ARIFA initiative. He further expressed TETFund’s readiness to expand the program beyond the agriculture sector to other STEM-based disciplines, targeting at least 500 fellows in the next two years. The intended theory of change is that the infusion of six hundred fit-for-purpose fellows into the Nigeria academia would open up a fresh stream of capacities and twinning opportunities to build institutional capacities within the South-South Technical Collaboration context. The new stream from Brazil should provide fresh impetus to strengthen the pedagogic delivery of all participating public tertiary institutions in Nigeria.

While thanking all partners, particularly the UFV team that hosted the Symposium, Executive Director of FARA, Akinbamijo, said: “As we cannot continue to graduate thousands of agriculturists each year with food import increasing yet, the Brazilian advantage as an attempt at a pedagogic retooling of the Nigerian academia one person at a time, by imbibing the culture of excellence and success stories and to see how these can be replicated back home, he further expressed gratitude to the government of Brazil for lending a helping hand in the spirit of the south-south collaboration and our shared cultural heritage.

ARIFA is a joint FARA-TETFund-Brazil initiative with 100% funding support from the Governments of Nigeria and institutional support from Brazil.

 

 

Naira hit a four-month low Thursday, depreciating 0.30 per cent against the U.S. dollar at the official market.

The currency which opened trading at N416.50 closed at N420.00 to a dollar at the close of business on Thursday, data published by FMDQ, where forex is officially traded showed.

This represents a N1.25 or 0.30 per cent devaluation from N418.75 it traded in the previous market session on Wednesday.

The naira hovered within an intraday high of N412.38 and slipped to a low of N444.00 before closing at N420.00 per $1 on Thursday.

This is the weakest rate the naira exchanged officially with the dollar in nearly five months after closing at N422.67 to a dollar on January 5, early this year.

Within the past four months, the currency has been trading between the range of N417.00-N419.00 and above mark before settling at N420.00 at the close of sales Thursday.

Forex supply jumped by 38.20 per cent with $160.00 million recorded at the close of business on Thursday against the $115.78 million posted in the previous session Wednesday.

Similarly, the local currency pushed towards N600.00 to a dollar at the parallel market on Thursday.

Uyo currency dealers exchanged the naira at N592.00 and sold N596.00 to a dollar, while Abuja black market dealers at Wuse Zone 4 said the currency was exchanged at N590.00 and sold at N593.00 per $1 on Thursday.

 

 

 

The police command in Sokoto says two suspects have been arrested over their alleged involvement in the killing of a female student at the Shehu Shagari College of Education.

The student, identified as Deborah Samuel, was said to have been attacked by a mob over remarks considered to be an insult to Prophet Mohammed.

Videos of the student being stoned and beaten with sticks were shared on social media, and the incident was reported to have occurred in the early hours of Thursday.

In a statement on the incident, Sanusi Abubakar, spokesman of the Sokoto police command, said operatives have been deployed to the area.

“At about 0900hrs, a distress call was received from Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto, stating that students were rioting over one female student named Deborah Samuel, a level two student, who was accused of making a social media post that blasphemed the holy prophet Muhammad (SAW),” the statement reads.

“Students forcefully removed the victim from the security room where she was hidden by the school authorities, killed her and burnt the building.

“The students banded together with miscreants and barricaded the Sokoto/Jega road.

“Upon receiving the information, the DC Operations led a team of policemen and all other operational commanders in the state to the school where the road was cleared and the situation was brought under control.

“Two students were arrested in connection with the crime committed.

“The school has been closed down by the school authority, and policemen were deployed to give tight security coverage.

“The Commissioner of Police, Sokoto State Command, Kamaldeen Okunlola, is appealing to members of the public to go about their lawful activities and should not panic as the situation is under control.

“Meanwhile, the suspects in the viral video on Twitter were spotted and will be nailed soon.”

Earlier on Thursday, Muhammadu Abubakar, the Sultan of Sokoto, condemned the incident and urged security operatives to ensure that the perpetrators are apprehended.

In a statement by Sa’idu Maccido, secretary of the sultanate council, the Sultan also urged the public to “remain calm and ensure peaceful co-exiatence among all people of the state and nation”.

 

 

 

A Supreme Court judge, Mary Peter-Odili, retired after attaining the retirement age of 70 on Thursday.

Speaking at the valedictory court session held in her honour, Mrs Peter-Odili lamented the spate of violent crimes in Nigeria, which she attributed to youth unemployment.

At the event which held at the Supreme Court in Abuja, the retiring apex court justice, who is the wife of Peter Odili, a former Rivers State governor, warned that the “urgency of what we are all faced with right now calls for necessity in tackling them.

“The massive unemployment of tertiary institution graduates is a tip of the icebergs.

“The millions of idle youth is not unrelated to the insecurity on the ground,” she said.

She said the current strike action by public universities’ lecturers, which has lasted over three months, has compounded youth restiveness.

“The situation is not helped by the perennial strikes which leave students idling away.”

In tackling the problem, Mrs Peter-Odili suggested that “the Head of State should take on the garb of Minister of Youth, Employment and Social Welfare.”

Drawing from her experience as a former First Lady in Rivers State, Peter-Odili said with the president assuming the role of employment minister, he would direct “the implementation of what is put in place without middlemen” hijacking the process.

She advised state governors to adopt same strategies in dealing with youth unemployment.

Furthermore, Peter-Odili in her valedictory speech advocated the urgent “restructuring” of Nigeria.

“My humble view is that the issue (of restructuring) should be given an immediate attention.”

Recalling her over four-decade judicial career, she thanked her husband, Peter, and colleagues for their support.

Eulogies

Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Tanko Muhammad, poured encomium on Peter-Odili for her “irrepressible voice in the temple of justice.”

Muhammad described the retiring jurist as the “epitome of jurisprudential finesse.”

“We are honouring an amiable lady of alluring qualities and excellence that transcend the legal profession,” he said.

The CJN noted that Peter-Odili “offered the best of her intellect to the advancement of the legal profession through her several years of inimitable adjudications at different levels of courts in Nigeria.

“She is a specimen of hard work, industry, discipline and high moral rectitude,” Muhammad said.

Similarly, Wole Olanipekun, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria(SAN), praised the retiring justice for her contribution to Nigeria’s judicial system.

But, Olanipekun who spoke on behalf of the Body of Senior Advocates of Nigeria, said the “legal profession today faces a lot of problems.”

“Political cases are responsible for the tagging of judiciary as ‘supermarket.'”

He pointed out that the Supreme Court cannot be “insular.”

“Where the Supreme Court gives a judgement in error, it should reverse itself”, adding that “forum-shopping” where lawyers shop for favourable court decisions “has to be addressed.”

Olanipekun urged the executive arm of government to “stop harassing the judiciary. The judiciary can never be inferior to any other arm of government.”

On his part, Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) Abubakar Malami, represented by Beatrice Jedy-Agba, Ministry of Justice’s permanent secretary, noted that Peter-Odili followed the path of honour during her time as justice on the bench of the Supreme Court.

He, however, called on the judiciary to embrace technological innovation to ensure a more effective and efficient justice delivery system.

Profile

Mrs Peter-Odili bowed out of service after attaining the 70 years mandatory retirement age.

She was born on May 12, 1952, to the royal family of Bernard Nzenwa in a highly commercially inclined community of Amudi Obizi, Ezinihitte-Mbaise Local Government Area of Imo State.

She made headlines in October last year after 15 suspected invaders, including a police officer, invaded her house to purportedly execute a search warrant.

The suspects are currently standing trial at the Federal High Court in Abuja.

 

 

 

 

 

Governor Godwin Emefiele of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says he is having fun with the whole drama around his 2023 ambition.

Emefiele said this while responding to questions from State House reporters after a closed door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, on Thursday.

Asked about his reaction to the report that the President had asked him to resign after the purchase of the presidential nomination and expression of interest forms of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Emefiele said: “There is no news now, but there will be news. You heard me, I said there is no news but there will be news.”

But when told that Nigerians were anxious about his position, he said: “Let them have heart attack. It’s good to have heart attack. I am having a lot of fun.”

The governor of the apex bank has been under intense pressure since expression of interest and nomination forms of the ruling APC were picked on his behalf, triggering outrage as many called on him to step down.

Governor Rotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State, who described Emefiele’s interest in the 2023 Presidency as “a joke taken too far”, had asked Buhari to fire him if he refused to step down.

But in a series of tweets after the development, Emefiele declined the presidential forms bought for him, saying he would use his resources to purchase them if he is interested in the race.

He said God would decide for him “in the next few days”.

But early this week, another twist was added to the development as a suit was filed before a Federal High Court in Abuja over the alleged plan to disqualify him from the 2023 presidential primaries slated for the end of this month.

Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has given political parties a deadline of June 3 to submit their candidates for the 2023 elections.

Some lawyers had argued that Emefiele was unfit to run going by Section 84 (12) of the Electoral Act.

The section states that no political appointee at any level shall be a voting delegate or be voted for at the Convention or Congress of any political party for the purpose of the nomination of candidates for any election.

But in some documents, Emefiele, through his lawyer, Mike Ozekhome, argued that he is not a political appointee and by provision of the constitution, he is expected to resign a month before the February 25, 2023, presidential election.

He also contended that a Federal High Court in Umuahia, Abia State, had nullified section 12 (8) of the Electoral Act.

INEC and the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) were joined in the suit.

Buhari had on Wednesday ordered the resignation of political appointees seeking to contest the 2023 elections.

The CBN governor was copied in the circular titled, ‘Ministers, heads of government agencies, ambassadors and other appointees with political ambitions to resign’.

On Wednesday, four of the nine ministers seeking to contest the 2023 elections quit the cabinet.

 

 

 

A small passenger plane with 11 passengers on board has crashed in a forest in central Cameroon on Wednesday, the country’s transport ministry has said in a Premium Times report.

The aircraft was flying from Yaounde Nsimalen Airport to Belabo in the east of the country when air traffic services lost radio contact.

“The air traffic services have lost radio contact with an aircraft flying from Yaounde-Nsimalen-Dompta-Belabo-Yaounde-Nsimalen on Wednesday, May 11, 2022 with 11 people on board,” Jean Ernest Massena Ngalle Bibehe, the transport minister was quoted to have said.

There were no survivors.

Reports have it that the pilot was Adzuayi Ewuga, a Nigerian and daughter of a former FCT minister of state, Solomon Ewuga.

The airplane reportedly belonged to Caverton and was carrying workers on a mission from their base in Douala to Belabo in the east region of Cameroon.

The crash is the first major industry incident to occur in Cameroon since 2007, about 15 years after a Kenya Airways plane carrying 114 people crashed after takeoff from Douala, killing everyone on board.

 

 

 

At least seven soldiers were killed and two others were missing in Taraba state, Northeast Nigeria after they were ambushed by gunmen while on patrol, two military sources said on Wednesday.

The attack occurred on Tuesday night when troops from the 93 Battalion came under heavy fire in the village of Tati in the Takum local government area of Taraba. A brigadier general and his aide were missing after the attack, the sources said.

"Right now a search and rescue operation is ongoing," said an army source from the 93 battalion who declined to be named because he is not authorised to speak to the media.

There was no claim of responsibility for the attack. An army spokesman did not immediately respond to calls for comment.

Taraba suffered two separate bombings last month that were claimed by Islamic State militants and killed at least three people and injured more than 30.

For more than a decade, Nigeria has grappled with an Islamist insurgency that has targeted communities and security forces in northern parts of the country.

 

 

 

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says its presidential ticket will not be zoned to any region.

Debo Ologunagba, PDP spokesperson, announced this Wednesday night after the national executive committee (NEC) meeting at the party’s headquarters in Abuja.

He said the decision aligns with the recommendation of the party’s zoning committee.

“After a very extensive deliberation, NEC aligned with the recommendation of the PDP national zoning committee that the presidential election should now be left open,” Ologunagba said

“The party should also work towards consensus where possible.”

The party’s decision implies that all presidential hopefuls from the six geo-political zones can contest at the party’s special convention scheduled to take place on May 28.

Delegates from across the country will elect a candidate to represent the party in the 2023 presidential election at the special convention.

The announcement finally put to rest speculations regarding the zoning of the opposition party’s presidential ticket.

In April, there were reports that the PDP presidential ticket was thrown open — after the zoning committee submitted its recommendation to the national working committee (NWC) of the party.

The situation elicited criticism, especially from those in the southern part of the country.

But Samuel Ortom, governor of Benue and chairman of the zoning committee, denied the claim and said he was misquoted on the matter.

The PDP spokesperson also said NEC appointed David Mark, former senate president, as chairman of the special convention committee, while Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, governor of Enugu, will serve as the deputy chairman and Ibrahim Shema as secretary.